A Very Ranger Holiday
by Anastasia Athene
Summary: I wouldn't know, Conner. My family's Jewish." Kira gets Hanukkah presents from a certain Red Ranger.
1. Default Chapter

**Just another fluffy piece from me, lol. I wanted to write a Christmas piece, because I love holiday fluff. This will be a…three-parter, I think. So look out for more chapters in the next two days !:) Enjoy, and please review! **

PRDT—A Very Ranger Holiday

"Nice hat," Kira Ford smirked, looking at her best friend Conner McKnight, who was wearing a bright red, positively _fluffy _Santa hat.

"Christmas is only a couple days away, Kira. Sorry if I'm a little excited."

"I wouldn't know. My family's Jewish. We celebrated Hanukkah last week."

"Really? I didn't know, Kira. That's cool, though. Don't you get, like, eight days of presents?" Kira rolled her eyes.

"That's not the point of Hanukkah, Conner. But, yeah, we do."

"Okay, cool. So tell me about it."

"Tell you about what?"

"Hanukkah. You said it wasn't all about presents. What's it all about, then?" Kira looked a little surprised.

"Why do you want to know about Hanukkah?" she asked, pushing her hair behind her ears self-consciously. Conner grinned brightly.

"Because, Kira. It seems pretty important to you. And if it's important to you, then I want to know about it." Kira blushed and smiled at Conner, shrugging her shoulders.

"Okay, then. Um…"

And so she told him the story of the Maccabees, and the battle they won. And of course, she told him of the one jar of oil that lasted for eight days instead of only one.

"That's why we light the menorah. Eight days, eight candles. Eight days of gifts."

Conner smiled softly at Kira. "Thanks for telling me about this, Kira." She looked away.

"It was nothing, Conner." He put his hand on her shoulder and forced her to look at him.

"It wasn't nothing, Kira. Thanks." He grinned. "This means I have some catching up to do, doesn't it?" Kira looked confused.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I was gonna get you a Christmas gift, but since that's not really your thing, I'm gonna have to get you eight days' worth of presents!" He laughed, and Kira rolled her eyes.

"Conner, you don't have to do that. Besides, Hanukkah was over yesterday. You're too late."

"I don't care. Hey, listen, I'm gonna go. Gotta do some shopping." He grinned one last time, tipping his fuzzy hat to her. Before she could protest, he was gone. _Probably used his hyper-speed. I should tell Dr. O._ Kira grumbled to herself. Then she smiled.

I wonder if he'll actually go through with it… 

**It gets better, I promise. LOL This was kind of the intro. Review, and happy holidays!!**


	2. Part 2: Mistletoe and Other Plants

**Here's part two: Kira's first four presents. Enjoy!!**

The next morning, Kira was at her locker, struggling to open the resistant lock.

"Having trouble, Kira?"

"Oh, hey, Dr. O. My locker's being…mean to me." The man in black laughed.

"Here, let me try it." Kira read off her combination, and Tommy pushed hard on the lock, popping it open.

"Thanks, Dr. O."

"No problem, Kira. There was probably something stuck—hey, what's this?" He pulled a small bouquet of flowers—all different kinds, but all yellow—out of her locker and grinned.

"Looks like someone's got a secret admirer," he said, handing her the flowers. She blushed.

"It's probably just Conner," she said without thinking. He gave her a look that clearly said, _Really, now, _and Kira immediately backpedaled.

"I mean, not like _that_. I mean, uh, he said he was gonna get me stuff for Hanukkah. I just wasn't sure if he'd actually do it or not. It's definitely not…the other thing you were thinking of, Dr. O."

Dr. Oliver didn't seem convinced, to say the least. "Uh, huh. Well, whatever you choose to believe, Kira. I'll see you in class."

"Whatever I choose to believe? What's that supposed to mean…?" Kira muttered herself, reaching into her locker and trying to retrieve her Chemistry book. As she pulled the book out, a piece of folded blue paper fell out. There was a crude drawing of a menorah on the front, with the middle candle (the shamash), along with one other candle, lit. "Day One," it said on the front, in Conner's distinct scrawl. Smiling to herself, she unfolded the note, reading softly to herself.

_"Dear Kira,_

_It's the first day of Hanukkah. Again, haha._

_I hope you like the flowers. _

_Love,_

_Conner"_

Kira went through the rest of the day, getting compliments from a few classmates on the flowers, an odd look from Ethan, and of course, a raised eyebrow or two from Dr. O (which she chose to skillfully ignore.) But she didn't see Conner until lunch.

"Hey, Kira. I see you got my Hanukkah present." Conner sat himself across from her at their regular lunch table, and Ethan, who had been there for a few minutes, laughed.

"Those were you, man? Wow. It took you long en—ow!" He was silenced by a well-placed kick to the shin. "Jeez!"

Kira raised an eyebrow, and Conner gave her an innocent smile.

"Here," he said, handing her another note and a small box wrapped in silver paper.

"What's this?" Reading the note, which had another menorah, this time with a second candle lit, she smiled.

"I thought it was only the first day." Conner shrugged.

"I don't know. Two a day, to make up for lost time. Open it!" he said, practically bouncing in his seat. Kira laughed.

"You'd think it was _your_ present, the way you're acting." But she obliged, carefully opening the package.

"Oh, Conner…" she breathed, taking it out of the paper. "It's beautiful."

"What is it?" Ethan asked, trying to get a look.

It was a notebook in simple black with golden music notes embroidered on the silken cover.

"For all those songs you'll write about me," Conner said cheekily, and Kira reached across the table to smack his arm.

"Yeah, right." She said, shaking her head. "But seriously, Conner. It's beautiful. Thank you."

She and Conner smiled at each other for a moment, oblivious to Ethan's raised eyebrows.

"Can you two stop the holiday flirting for a few minutes so I can eat?"

"We weren't—" Ethan just shook his head.

"Yeah, right. Can I have your brownie, Kira?"

Kira handed it over, cheeks a little pink. But she smiled anyway.

_I wonder what tomorrow will bring…_

"Unhh…morning, Mom." Kira stumbled into her kitchen at exactly 11:32 that Saturday morning, greeting her mother and grabbing a box of Frosted Flakes from the cabinet.

"Morning, hon. Oh, by the way, your friend Conner called about an hour ago. He said something about the Cyberspace at noon—something about a gift?" Kira looked at the clock and nearly shrieked.

"Mom, it's 11:30! Why didn't you wake me up? I haven't even showered yet!" Inhaling her cereal, Kira rushed up the stairs and her mother heard the sound of running water. Exactly half an hour later, Kira rushed down again, wearing black sweatpants and a yellow t-shirt with a black rose printed on the front. Shoving her feet into black flip-flops (this was California, after all) she headed out the door, yelling a "bye!" to her mother.

"Sorry I'm late," Kira said, coming up behind Conner, who was sitting at the counter.

"It's okay. Your mom said you were still sleeping when I called. It doesn't really matter, anyway. Here," he said, offering her a long, thin box tied with a red ribbon. Inside, Kira found a black guitar strap, emblazoned with a bold yellow 'K'. Upon closer inspection, she saw a tiny pterodactyl under the letter, and she smiled.

"Conner, this is so cool. How'd you know I needed a new one? I didn't tell anyone."

"Well, the old one looked pretty ratty at your show yesterday, so…" Kira smiled, throwing her arms around his neck.

"Thanks, Conner. This—all of this—is very sweet of you."

Was he blushing? "It's not a big deal, Kira. Happy Hanukkah. Oh, and you better be free around six tonight."

"Why?"

"Day number four. Dinner, on me. Wherever you want, whatever you want. I'll even cook for you, if that's what you want."

"Really…I'd like to see that. Conner McKnight, cooking. Hmm…yeah, that's what I want." Conner laughed.

"Well, you better like spaghetti. It's the only thing I can make."

Kira arrived at the McKnight house at exactly six o'clock in black dress pants and a gauzy yellow blouse. She rang the doorbell twice before Conner answered in a red apron (what else?) Laughing, she followed him inside.

"It's strange, you in an apron." She told him, kicking off her shoes.

"What, you don't think it's sexy?"

The dinner was delicious, and Kira told him so while she put her shoes back on, getting ready to leave.

"Thanks, Conner. I know I've told you that repeatedly, but…thanks." He smiled, looking away.

"It's nothing, Kira—hey, what are you looking at?"

"What's that?" Conner followed her gaze to above where she was standing, where a small sprig of green and white grinned evilly down upon them.

"Uh…"

"_Conner._"

"That's, um…that's mistletoe, Kira." Her face went slack in realization. She may have not seen mistletoe before, but she sure as hell knew what it meant.

"Oh," she said simply, not knowing what else to say. Conner shifted awkwardly.

"Yeah…it's just…a stupid Christmas tradition. My mom—"

He didn't finish because Kira had stood up on tiptoe and kissed his lips quickly.

"It's okay if a Jewish person does it, right?" she laughed nervously before opening his door. "Thanks for dinner, Conner. Uh, good night."

Conner was still standing beneath the mistletoe, a huge grin on his face.

_I wonder if it's okay to love Hanukkahwhen you're not even Jewish…_

**LOL I had to add the mistletoe. So easy. Hope you all liked it!**


	3. Part 3: Realization: Oblivion

**Here's the last part. It's a little longer, but it ties everything up, so enjoy. The songs are by Fisher and the last one is by Sarah McLachlan, because I have no songwriting talent whatsoever. Happy Holidays!**

**PRDT—A Very Ranger Holiday **

**Part Three: Realization: Oblivion**

Sunday morning, Kira woke up to a small package and an envelope lying at the foot of her bed. Rubbing the sleep from her eyes, she eagerly tore open the envelope to find a pressed sprig of mistletoe and a note.

_Dear Kira,_

_Sorry I couldn't be here to see you open this gift. Family thing. Your mom let me in, by the way. Anyway, I hope you like your present. I was in the mall, and it…it just screamed "Kira!" at me. Happy fifth day of Hanukkah._

_Love, Conner_

_P.S. Here's some mistletoe. And yes, it's **definitely** okay if a Jewish person does it. Especially if that Jewish person is you. Happy Hanukkah._

Blushing, Kira ripped open the box. Inside was a black t-shirt that said 'SHUT UP' in bright yellow letters. She laughed at Conner's choice—she did say that to him a lot, didn't she?—and put it back in its box, making a note to wear it the next time she saw him. Maybe even tonight, if she was lucky…Kira blushed again at the thought and carefully folded the mistletoe back into the card. She shook her head.

"Conner, what am I going to do with you?"

-----

Later that day, Kira headed to the mall herself, determined to find Conner _something _for getting her all those gifts. While she was there, she picked up a brachiosaurus figure for Dr. O, a cookbook for Hayley, a new sketchbook for Trent, and a gift certificate to the electronics store for Ethan. Conner's gift, however, was proving to be harder than expected.

"A new soccer ball? Nah. He has like, five. Clothes? Boring. A movie? Maybe."

"Talking to yourself in a crowded mall. That means you're crazy, you know?"

"Conner! Don't scare me like that!" Kira scolded after nearly falling off the bench she had been sitting on. Conner just grinned.

"Hey, Kira. Didn't think I'd see you here. I see you got my present." he said, sliding next to her on the bench and nodding at her shirt. She smiled.

"Yeah. Thanks, Conner. Hey, what are you doing here? I thought you said you had 'family stuff'."

"I do. Last minute Christmas shopping with my mom." He waved to a petite woman who was in line at Auntie Anne's, and she smiled back at him. "What about you?"

"Oh…doing some shopping myself. You know, you are incredibly hard to shop for."

"Really? Well, you're not." He smiled widely at her. "You know you don't have to get me anything." Kira groaned.

"Yes, I do. Conner, you're buying me all these great things, and I have half a clue what to get you! I feel like I should. Give me a hint, Conner, please?" He just laughed at her.

"Kira, I really don't need anything from you. Well…actually, you _could _do something for me, but only after your last gift." He smiled mysteriously, and she pushed his shoulder.

"What? What is it? Conner!" But it was obvious he wasn't telling, and she sighed in defeat.

"Here," he said, handing her a bag from fye. "I might as well just give this to you now. Happy sixth day of Hanukkah." Curious, Kira took out a CD.

"Uppers and Downers. Who's Fisher?" she asked, inspecting the case.

"My cousin likes them. Her. Whatever. Anyway, their music kind of reminds me of you. Only, a little more piano than guitar, but still. I think you'd like it. Oh, listen to these two. They're good." He pointed to the first two tracks, and stood up. "Well, I should get going. More important shopping to do." He smiled one last time at her, then headed off to the bookstore, where his mother was standing, munching on a pretzel.

"Conner, wait!" But he was gone. Sighing, Kira stood up as well, deciding that her search for Conner's gift would be fruitless, anyway, so she headed toward the exit with her bags and a Fisher CD in tow.

_-----_

_I didn't see anything in you when we first met  
__When I believed I would fall in love at first sight  
__Night after night we bared our souls over coffee  
__Now I know I love you…_

_Hmm…_Kira mused after popping the CD into her car's player. _This is pretty good…I wonder why Conner likes them so much, though…Oh, well. _She scanned, skipping to the next track. _…_

_Hey there, oblivious!  
__Here is your happiness  
__If you would only turn around  
__Isn't it obvious?  
__Mr. Oblivious  
__Love can so easily be found  
__Just turn around..._

_If I could be so bold  
__May I make a suggestion?  
__You've been searching so long  
__But in the wrong direction  
__I've been standing right behind you all this time…_

Then realization struck. Oblivious…was Kira really that oblivious? "Oh, my God…Conner?" Kira was so shocked, she pulled over to the side of the road and just sat there. Did Conner…? Did she…? The presents. Dinner, especially. The stolen smiles. "Oh, my God." Kira repeated. Conner liked her. He _had _to. The question was, did she like him, too? With that thought, Kira pulled back on the road and sped home, a million thoughts burning in her brain.

As soon as she got home, she promptly locked herself in her room and sank down on her bed, her new CD set on repeat. She sat mutely for a few minutes, just thinking about Conner. Then, she seemed to jump with pure electricity, grabbing her guitar and fumbling in her backpack for her new song notebook—the one Conner gave her, of course. Flipping it open, she began to scribble madly, forgetting everything else except her guitar, her notebook, and a certain Red Ranger named Conner McKnight.

-----

"You're lucky you don't have school today, Kira," her mother told her as Kira dragged herself into the kitchen at 12:45. "I tried to wake you up around 10, but you were out cold. I don't think a bulldozer could have woken you up. Late night? I heard you playing." Kira yawned.

"Yeah, I was on a roll. Had to finish it. Do we have any Corn Pops?"

"In the pantry. Oh, Conner called again." Kira seemed to wake up a little more, and her mother smirked, noticing the change.

"Really? I mean, oh, okay. Great. What did he want?"

"He wanted to talk to me, actually." Off Kira's horrified look, she laughed. "He asked me a few questions about you. He's planning dinner for you, Kira. I won't spoil anything, though. He's a very nice boy, Kira. Cute, too. Why aren't you going out with him, again?"

Kira just muttered an "I don't know," into her cereal.

"Are you all right, sweetie?"

"I don't know. I'm gonna go…work on something, okay Mom?" With that, Kira disappeared up the stairs, and the sounds of a guitar filtered through the ceiling. Her mother just smiled into her iced tea.

-----

A few hours later, 5:30 had rolled around, and Mrs. Ford had left to see a movie, telling Kira that she wouldn't want to ruin her night. Kira was now pacing her room in her best jeans and a golden tank top, trying to figure out exactly what Conner was planning and putting some finishing touches on her newest song. Then the doorbell rang, and Kira nearly jumped a mile.

"You know, I was never this jumpy until you came along," she muttered to herself as she ran downstairs to open the door. "Conner, hey."

"Hi. These are for you." He smiled and offered her a bouquet of red and yellow roses.

"Conner, they're beautiful. You didn't really have to do all this." He smiled.

"You know, you're not the only one who's saying that. Ethan, Dr. O…maybe I _am _crazy." He laughed. "I don't care, though. If it makes you happy…" His voice trailed off, and he looked away, unusually self-conscious. "Hey, is that your stereo?" He walked over and took a CD out of his pocket. Soon, the sounds of Ella Fitzgerald filtered through the speakers, and Kira looked surprised.

"How'd you know I liked Ella? I haven't told anyone…Mom told you, didn't she?"

"Yeah. I was surprised. You don't seem like you'd be a fan of hers."

"Yeah, well, there's a lot of things you don't know about me, Conner McKnight." She smiled to show him she wasn't being nasty, and he grinned back at her.

"Of course. Are you hungry? I brought Chinese food and smoothies. Hayley says Happy belated Hanukkah, by the way." Kira grinned at him, and they dug into the lo mein as Ella played softly in the background.

"Hey, Conner?" Kira mumbled between bites of fried rice. "Why _are _you doing all this, anyway? I mean, getting me all this stuff. Cooking me dinner, getting me flowers. I mean…don't get me wrong, Conner. This is really great. But…why?" Conner stared into his lo mein as if it held the answer, and Kira immediately felt stupid. "I'm sorry. You don't have to answer that. Sorry."

"Open this," Conner said suddenly, handing her a large, flat package. She uncertainly tore it open and lifted the box lid to find a beautiful picture frame split into three parts. One small frame held a picture of the whole group—her, Conner, Ethan, Trent, even Dr. O and Hayley. The other small frame held a picture of her and Conner at the Cyberspace, smiling over smoothies. The middle frame was of her, Ethan and Conner, all grinning widely. Kira smiled softly.

"Conner, this is…sweet. Thank you. Where'd you get these pictures?" He actually looked up at her, raising his eyebrows suggestively.

"There's some things about me you don't know either, Kira." They smiled at each other until Kira jumped up, determination sparkling in her eyes.

"Wait here, Conner. I have to give you my present." She rushed up the stairs before he could protest, and came back down with her guitar and notebook in tow.

"Kira, what—"

"Shhh. I wrote something for you." Pausing the CD, she began to play a soft, slow melody.

"_I have a smile, stretched from ear to ear  
__To see you walking down the road  
__We meet at the light, I stare for awhile  
__The world around us disappears  
__It's just you and me on my island of hope  
__--A breath between us could be miles  
__Let me surround you, a sea to your shore  
__Let me be the calm you seek…_

_But every time I'm close to you  
__There's too much I can't say  
__And you just walk away…  
__And I forgot to tell you__ I love you  
__And the night's too long and cold here without you  
__I grieve in my condition  
__For I cannot find the words to say  
__I need you so…"_

Kira finished, biting her lip in anticipation. "So…" Conner just laughed softly.

"What?"

"Well, this kind of ruins my last present."

"Why?" Conner looked at her, and she met his gaze.

"Well, I was…I was going to ask you…I was going to ask you if you wanted to go out with me tomorrow. Like, an actual date. Because…well, I like you, Kira. A lot. And I know that—"

Conner didn't finish, because Kira had put her guitar down and soundly kissed him, smiling as she broke away.

"Look, no mistletoe!" she quipped, sliding her arms around his neck. He laughed, kissing her back.

"So, can I take this as a yes?"

"Yes." They kissed again, slow and sweet.

"Kira?"

"Yeah?"

"You know, I think Hanukkah's my new favorite holiday."

"Conner!"

**Hope you guys enjoyed this cheesy holiday spectacular. Hope you all had a great holiday!**


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